STRETCH
start . . .
My heart is was pulled, tugged and stretched just a bit ago, when I read this blog post by a mama I know of a foster son. Their family has been stretched and pulled as they have witnessed this broken, precious little boy not understanding why he cannot go back to his own mom . . . why the time keeps getting extended . . . and why promises keep getting broken. How does a little one understand why he cannot go back to his mama after two years? Oh my . . . his heart is also being stretched. He is learning about lying and yet, he is not suppose to lie. He is learning about rejection, yet he is suppose to love those around him unconditionally. What picture of love is true that he witnesses? And then the outside community tries to stretch the excuses, and find fault with the boy and label him and drug him rather than the “system” and his birth mother.
My heart was so torn reading the story, and I just wonder how often we are stretched to love these little children Jesus wants to come to Him. I wonder at times when I’ve seen a child misbehave in the grocery store, if I may have judged wrong. We think often it’s the child . . . might it possibly be the parent?
But Jesus called them to Him, saying,
“Let the children come to Me,
and do not hinder them,
for to such belongs the kingdom of God.
Luke 18:16
Do we hinder them? Or, do stretch out our arms to welcome them, as they are, loving them, unconditionally? Showing them Jesus’ love? Do we stretch out our arms to families who undertake such an immense servant’s heart to care for them, disrupting their lives, families, homes, finances, etc? I can only imagine a card of encouragement, a loaf or two of bread, some new clothes for the child or giving the mom an hour break or two would help stretch her mission field.
My heart has been broken and stretched in a different way tonight . . . might yours be too?
Joining Lisa-Jo and her Five Minute Friday.
” five minutes of free writing without worrying about getting it right “
Such powerful truth. May He enlarge all of our hearts to love these children.
Such truth written here.
Oh yes…those stretches are worth any growing pains endured…
and Jesus….come quickly.
Thanks for stirring my heart, Loni!
I love the Soli deo Gloria! And yes, what a stretching moment. Thank the Lord we serve a God who loves to build beauty from these kinds of broken moments.
Oh. Praying that at some point God will allow us to be foster parents. Reading the stories should stretch us. And cause us to pray with those who have taken the responsibility to love a child.